A mom has issued a warning after sharing the heartbreaking story of how her once-perfectly healthy baby girl was left brain-damaged by a kiss on the mouth.
"When parents say 'don't kiss', this is why" -- that's the message eight-year-old Breelyn's mom had for people during an interview on the Special Books by Special Kids YouTube Channel.
Speaking about her daughter, Breelyn's mom revealed that she was born a perfectly healthy baby girl.
"She was fine," the mom revealed. "And [at] two days old, somebody was so excited to see her they kissed her on the mouth."
After several days, Breelyn - a little over a week old herself - began sleeping very heavily throughout the day. Her mom realized something was not okay when she began having to wake her daughter for feeds.
The mom then revealed that, just two weeks after the kiss, Breelyn started suffering from seizures.
Explaining how this kiss resulted in Breelyn developing a brain injury, the mom explained that the individual - who had a cold sore at the time - ended up giving the infant HSV encephalitis - an illness associated with cerebral dysfunction caused by herpes simplex viruses belonging to either type 1 (HSV-1) or type 2 (HSV-2).
"The infection got into her brain fluid [...] and it attacked her brain," the mom revealed.
"When parents say not to kiss your children, this is one of the reasons for sure," the mom added.
The mom explained that 60% of the left side of Breelyn's brain was damaged as a result of the virus.
Breelyn's stepfather added that many people respond "in awe" after learning about what happened, adding that many people are unaware that there are such health risks and know people who kissed their children when they were born.
"It's a shock and awe moment because [they realize] it could have happened," he said.
Breelyn's mom added that she does know who the person was who kissed her daughter.
"They were very upset when they found out that they were the one that had done it," she said, adding that the individual also had no idea about the risks.
The mom added that although she spent so many years being angry at the person, she was learned to let it go and move on.
"I have actually forgiven the person," she said. "It was an accident, they didn't truly mean it."
Breelyn's stepfather also urged parents to be wary of who is around their children, and don't be afraid to set boundaries.
Per the NHS website, anybody with a cold sore or signs of a herpes infection should follow these guidelines:
Do not kiss any babies, wash your hands before contact with a baby, wash your hands before breastfeeding, and cover up any cold sores, lesions or signs of a herpes infection anywhere on your body to avoid passing on the virus.
Despite Breelyn's health struggles, her mom reveals that she loves many things that other children do - such as a love for Elvis Presley. She also says that Breelyn is a "social butterfly".
She also has a loving relationship with her brother, who she adores playing with.
For more information about neonatal herpes, click here.
